Cropped Out: pray for women smallholder farmers

The very women who feed the world are facing the highest risks of hunger, and receiving the least support to survive a rapidly changing climate.

Across lower-income countries around the world, women smallholders* work tireless hours to grow food, sustain communities and keep global food supply chains moving. Yet, climate shocks like extreme heat, droughts or flooding are destroying their crops, while unjust systems ironically mean that the farmers trying to grow food face extreme risks of hunger themselves.

This harvest, we’re inviting you to join Afroza, Beli and Zainab – three women who are cultivating hope in challenging soil – on a journey to see global food through their eyes and hold their fields in our prayers. Together, we can make sure smallholder farmers aren’t being cropped out of the picture.

*Definitions vary globally, but in our experience, smallholder farmers in lower-income countries tend to be people who work on fewer than two hectares of land.

Why pray for women smallholder farmers this Harvest?

Discussions around climate change and broken food systems can feel distant, abstract, and overwhelming. But behind every seed and every harvest is a real farmer, tending her field and striving to build a flourishing future for her community.

Scripture reminds us: ‘The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.’ (Psalm 24:1) Caring for God's creation and standing in solidarity with our global neighbours is central to our faith and our discipleship. When we pray, we hold onto hope – for ourselves, our neighbours and our world.

Will you refuse to let women smallholders stay cropped out? Together, we can put them back where they belong – at the heart of our prayers and our global food systems.

Meet the women putting food on the table and hope in the soil

Step onto the farm and walk alongside one of three inspiring women during a week of prayer this Harvest:

Zainab, Iraq

Visit Zainab’s farm, where she grows radishes and cabbages. She struggled to keep her farm alive amid extreme heat and severe water scarcity. With new irrigation pipes and quality seeds, she saved water and brought her dry land back to life.

Afroza, Bangladesh

Walk through the sugarcane fields with Afroza. Facing poverty and struggling to afford her son's education, she joined a local women’s group that gave her the startup support to cultivate sugarcane and raise chickens. Today, her farm is thriving and inspiring her whole village.

Beli, Nepal

See the rows of tomatoes and other vegetables Beli tends to every day. A survivor of illegal trafficking, she built a new life through practical agricultural training, giving her the tools and confidence to earn a reliable, independent income.

What to expect on your Harvest journey

When you sign up, you’ll journey alongside Afroza, Beli or Zainab through a week of emails we’ll send you from Sunday 27 September:

• In your first email on Sunday 27 September, you’ll meet your chosen farmer, step onto her land, see her farm, and hear her story in her own words.
• Your second email on Tuesday 29 September will help you explore the challenges facing smallholder farmers, from severe weather to lack of support to adapt to climate change, and how to pray for them.
• Your third email on Friday 2 October will show you how Tearfund is working with smallholders through our local partners, and give you ways to take action in response, including a special prayer just in time for Harvest Sunday.

To wrap up your journey, we’ll give you simple, meaningful ways to continue sowing seeds of change alongside farming communities around the world.